Legally unavailable for almost ninety years due to copyright infringement, 1932’s Letty Lynton has made its way to Blu-ray courtesy of Warner Archive. Based on the novel by Marie Belloc Lowndes, a young Joan Crawford stars as Letty Lynton, a wealthy New York socialite desperate to escape her cold-hearted mother (Mary Robson. Letty has spent several months wandering around south of the border. She has spent the last three months in Montevideo in the company of European racketeer Emile Renaul (Nils Asther). After several failed attempts to leave him, Letty realizes the only way she can is for her and her maid Miranda (Louise Closser Hale) to leave the country.

On a steamship back to the United States, Letty catches the eye of Jerry Darrow (Robert Montgomery) and quickly finds herself falling in love. Jerry wants Letty to be his wife, however, when the boat docks, Renaul, who views Letty as a possession, is their waiting for her. He demands that Letty return to Uruguay with him, or he will provide the newspapers with a stack of love letters Letty wrote to him. Faced with nothing but difficult choices, what will Letty do?

A typical pre-code melodrama, Letty Lynton is elevated by the performances of Joan Crawford and Robert Montgomery. Aided by beautiful gowns designed by Adrian, she embodies the wealthy socialite driven to the edge by love. While I’ve never been a great fan of Robert Montgomery (there’s often something very standoffish about him), as Jerry he’s pleasant, and good humored.

The last ten minutes of Letty Lynton are well worth waiting for. Leaning into its pre-code status, the ending is romantic, and more than a little unexpected. I won’t ruin the ending for those who haven’t seen Letty Lynton. Suffice to say, you wouldn’t see this ending after the Production Code was enforced starting in July 1934.

Directed by Clarence Brown, Letty Lynton has a fine supporting cast. Lewis Stone (who always seemed to look older than he was), makes the most of his one scene as the District Attorney; May Robson is perfect as Letty’s chilly mother who unexpectedly thaws in the final scene; Walter Walker and Emma Dunn are appealing as Jerry’s caring parents, and Louise Closser Hale is Letty’s often flustered maid, Miranda.

Presented in the 1.37:1 aspect ratio and derived from 4K scans of the best available elements, Warner Archive has delivered a fine transfer. While there does appear to be a missing frame or two, and some shots are softer than others, considering the films age, this is probably the best Letty Lynton is ever going to look.  Black levels are surprisingly inky, and whites are clean.

The DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 mono sound mix does have occasional dropouts, but the engineers have done a commendable job, given what they had to work with.  There’s a slight, low-level hiss throughout much of the film, but it isn’t particularly distraction. Given the films age, overall, this soundtrack is fitting.

English SDH subtitles are included.

The following extras are available.

• Irving Thalberg: Prince of Hollywood (1:14:04) Robert Trachtenberg’s 2005 documentary life and career of producer/production head Irving G. Thalberg. Featuring interviews with Gavin Lambert, Scott Eyman, and Bob Thomas among others.
• Radio Performances Featuring Joan Crawford: Good News of 1938(52:27) and Good News of 1939 (56:53); Lux Radio Theater ‘s production of “A Doll’s House” with Joan Crawford and Basil Rathbone (59:33); The Silver Theatre ‘s production of “Train Ride” with Joan Crawford (29:37); Gulf Screen Guild Theater’s production of “None Shall Part Us” with Joan Crawford, Lew Ayres, and Ronald Colman (31:25).